Hard to drill through!? That's a fact.

[roo_ster]

Reminded of Mal's line from Serenity, when he went to the backup transmitter separated by open space, dangly chains, & such.
Mal: "Hard to get to?! That's a fact."

What reminded me was drilling holes through the porcelain tile I installed in the master bath.  Dear Lord in Heaven, I have never had such trouble drilling through tile.  I've drilled ceramic tile before.  And porcelain.  But nothing comes close to this porcelain tile.  I think we ought to develop applique armor kits for third world armies.  Their tanks and APCs could benefit from this stuff.  And look so, so nice.

I used tile bits and then this funky hole saw rig:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/BRUTUS-5-16-Diamond-Grit-Drill-Bit-for-Granite-Porcelain-and-Other-Tiles-10566Q/202205600




Thing is, the rig is just about worthless as-is.  You gotta block off 2/3 drain holes in the top tank and it helps to also tape it to the wall.  And then, drill SLOW.  Go too fast and the porcelain plug will get stuck and ruin the bit.  Refill tank as it empties.

Oh, and I would like to wish piles and bunions on the towel & TP holder designers for wanting/requiring TWO holes per side.  With four anchors through this porcelain, I bet I could do pull-ups on the towel rack if the bar itself did not give out.

[Balog]

What an odd contraption at the link. I've never seen the like.

[KD5NRH]

Oh, and I would like to wish piles and bunions on the towel & TP holder designers for wanting/requiring TWO holes per side.

That's because even builders are too cheap and lazy to put a little actual wood behind the drywall that most of those are screwed to.  (Not like it's hard to figure out where towel bars and especially the TP hanger will need to go before the drywall is up.)  After the towel bar had eaten at least its third set of those cheap plastic anchors and trashed the drywall enough, I cut out a section big enough to run double 2x4s between the studs, patched over it with fresh drywall, and screwed the bar on with 2.5" screws to the 2x4s and a stud.  I bet that damn thing is still rock solid.  Most of the time, I just use either toggle bolts or expansion anchors, but I wanted that one done right.

[Brad Johnson]

A dedicated glass/tile bit is about the only way to get through ceramic tile.  I found out the hard way too.

Brad

[bedlamite]

After the towel bar had eaten at least its third set of those cheap plastic anchors and trashed the drywall enough,

Next time try these. They really do hold a lot more than the old style expansion anchors. Of course, if you do manage to pull them out, you'll be doing drywall work the first time.

[KD5NRH]

Next time try these. They really do hold a lot more than the old style expansion anchors. Of course, if you do manage to pull them out, you'll be doing drywall work the first time.

I've used them before, but all this is fairly irrelevant in the current place; interior walls are plywood, (with the studs flat, so the walls are thinner than normal but still strong) exterior ones are concrete.  Even the ceiling is plywood because the first tenants (who got a discount for fixing it up) hated working with drywall and had a decent wood shop set up in the garage.  Looks better than you'd think.

[roo_ster]

I've used them before, but all this is fairly irrelevant in the current place; interior walls are plywood, (with the studs flat, so the walls are thinner than normal but still strong) exterior ones are concrete.  Even the ceiling is plywood because the first tenants (who got a discount for fixing it up) hated working with drywall and had a decent wood shop set up in the garage.  Looks better than you'd think.

Is it thin plywood?  Perhaps like the old wood paneling?

[KD5NRH]

Is it thin plywood?  Perhaps like the old wood paneling?

Not any that I've put screws or nails in so far.  Feels like 1/2", with something (either plaster or just 20 years worth of repeated applications of paint) smoothing it out so that you really can't tell it's wood until you get through that.

[MillCreek]

In this sort of situation, I wonder if an epoxy or construction adhesive would be an alternative.

[Firethorn]

In this sort of situation, I wonder if an epoxy or construction adhesive would be an alternative.

I'll echo this one.  The proper adhesives can really do a lot, especially if you can give them a good amount of properly prepared surface area to work with.